Featured Research

from universities, journals, and other organizations

Novel genes influencing kidney disease risk discovered

Date:

May 5, 2010

Source:

Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health

Summary:

Scientists have identified more than a dozen genes that may play a role in the etiology of common forms of kidney disease. They examined common variations in DNA sequences in more than 65,000 individuals of European descent. Common variations in several genes were found to be more frequent among people with poor kidney function or chronic kidney disease than in those with normal kidney function.

Share This

A team of researchers from the United States and Europe has identified more than a dozen genes that may play a role in the etiology of common forms of kidney disease. The team, known as the CKDGen Consortium, examined common variations in DNA sequences in more than 65,000 individuals of European descent. Common variations in several genes were found to be more frequent among people with poor kidney function or chronic kidney disease than in those with normal kidney function. The researchers further confirmed their findings in more than 20,000 additional individuals.

Related Articles

The findings are published in the April 11 edition of Nature Genetics.

Chronic kidney disease is a serious public health problem in the U.S. and around the world. Characterized by reduced kidney function or kidney damage, the disease affects approximately 10 percent of adults in the US. Research over the past 10 years has shown that chronic kidney disease increases the risk for cardiovascular diseases such as coronary heart disease and stroke. In addition, the disease can progress to the point where kidney transplant or dialysis is required.

Important risk factors for chronic kidney disease include diabetes and hypertension, although kidney disease clusters in families. The hereditary factors underlying chronic kidney disease have been difficult to determine until recently, when new methods to search for risk genes became available. The CKDGen Consortium applied one of the new methods, called genome-wide association study. In 2008, Johns Hopkins researchers used similar methods to identify common variants for non-diabetic end stage renal disease, gout and sudden cardiac death.

For the latest study, the CKDGen Consortium team conducted genome-wide association studies among participants of 20 population-based studies. As part of these studies, more than 2,500,000 genetic variants for each study participant were examined in relation to kidney function. The researchers found strong evidence for more than 12 genes influencing chronic kidney disease risk and kidney function.

"We've know for a long time that diabetes, hypertension and family history are strong risk factors for kidney disease, but we have not been able to fully understand why. These findings will ultimately shed light on how and why kidney disease clusters in families and why it occurs in some individuals but not others," said Linda Kao, PhD, MHS, associate professor in the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's departments of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and the senior Johns Hopkins author on the study.

"By studying the genes identified in this study, we can learn more about basic mechanisms underlying kidney function and disease. These novel insights can form a foundation to improve prevention and therapy of kidney diseases," said the study's lead author, Anna Kφttgen, MD, MPH, an adjunct assistant professor in the Bloomberg School's Department of Epidemiology.

"It is exciting to see research from around the world come together to collaborate and unlock the mysteries of kidney disease genetics. We learned that together we can do a lot more than apart," said Josef Coresh, MD, PhD, MHS, professor in the Bloomberg School's departments of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and the principle investigator of ARIC, a large study contributing to the discovery.

The research was funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, the Icelandic Heart Association and the Icelandic Parliament, the German Research Foundation, the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research and the Netherlands Heart Foundation, and the European Commission.

More From ScienceDaily

More Health & Medicine News

Featured Research

Mar. 3, 2015  No significant change in home habits of smokers have been observed in the aftermath of a ban on smoking in public spaces, researchers report. Greater inspiration to kick the habit likely comes from ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Heart function has been associated with the development of dementia and Alzheimer's disease through a new study. Participants with decreased heart function, measured by cardiac index, were two to ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Children of recently separated or divorced families are likelier to drink sugar-sweetened beverages than children in families where the parents are married, putting them at higher risk for obesity ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Gastric bypass and similar stomach-shrinking surgeries are a popular option for obese patients looking to lose weight or treat type 2 diabetes. While the surgeries have been linked to a decreased ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Most people consume more salt than they need and therefore have a higher risk of heart disease and stroke, which are the two leading causes of death worldwide. But a new study reveals that dietary ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Twice as many children born to mothers who took antibiotics during pregnancy were diagnosed with asthma by age 3 than children born to mothers who didn’t take prenatal antibiotics, a new study has ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Pediatric otolaryngologists and surgeons are concerned with parents getting the wrong message regarding the safety/desirability of letting babies and young children eat peanuts to prevent them from ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015  Why do people shake hands? A new study suggests one of the reasons for this ancient custom may be to check out each other's odors. Even if we are not consciously aware of this, handshaking may ... full story

Featured Videos

Mom Triumphs Over Tragedy, Helps Other Families

AP (Mar. 3, 2015)  After her son, Dax, died from a rare form of leukemia, Julie Locke decided to give back to the doctors at St. Jude Children&apos;s Research Hospital who tried to save his life. She raised $1.6M to help other patients and their families. (March 3)
Video provided by AP

Woman Convicted of Poisoning Son

AP (Mar. 3, 2015)  A woman who blogged for years about her son&apos;s constant health woes was convicted Monday of poisoning him to death by force-feeding heavy concentrations of sodium through his stomach tube. (March 3)
Video provided by AP

Related Stories

Jan. 29, 2015  Salt intake accelerated kidney scarring in rats with chronic kidney disease by activating a brain-kidney connection called the renin-angiotensin axis that interlinks the damaged kidney and brain by ... full story

Nov. 14, 2014  Sleep apnea may accelerate kidney function decline in diabetic patients with kidney disease, a study shows. "This study shows that a high-risk score for obstructive sleep apnea is common in ... full story

Mar. 12, 2014  A natural product found in grapefruit can prevent kidney cysts from forming, new research indicates. Naringenin, which is also present in other citrus fruits, has been found to successfully block the ... full story

Jan. 13, 2014  Patients with chronic kidney disease who received robot-assisted partial nephrectomy to treat kidney cancer have minimal loss of kidney function -- a smaller amount even than patients with normal ... full story

July 15, 2010  Chronic kidney disease affects millions in North America, with persons of African heritage being at a four-fold higher risk and those of Hispanic heritage having a two-fold higher risk compared to ... full story

ScienceDaily features breaking news and videos about the latest discoveries in health, technology, the environment, and more -- from major news services and leading universities, scientific journals, and research organizations.